Hiding in Plain Sight
by Shadu
Summary: Ianto and Lisa had more in common than they thought. It's coming to a head, and Torchwood Three has to deal with it.
1. Prologue

Adam laid a hand on Ianto's shoulder, forcing himself into Ianto's mind. He had done it a million times on all sorts of planets filled with all kinds of creatures and beings, but this time was different. Having already gotten a feel for human minds, he knew what to expect, and this person wasn't what he expected.

He could tell. From the moment he felt the young man's mind, he knew. There was something odd about him, something foreign and absent from the other humans he had encountered. It resisted Adam's influence, trying to push him away.

Adam wasn't relenting. He pressed in further, feeling the object that blocked his way. It was unlike anything he had come across before. It was a lock, guarding the mind from intrusion. Adam tried to squeeze around it, but he found it was more like a wall, covering and protecting this man's thoughts. He pressed and prodded, trying to break through this block. He needed to infiltrate everyone's mind, and this man was no exception. Everyone here, in Torchwood, had to remember him.

He touched the wall again, watching it shimmer again. The blue shimmer ran over the wall, revealing the various blocks that made up the wall. He perked. He pushed on one specific part and suddenly, a memory, a memory of Ianto's, flooded through his head. And that's when he a wave of understanding washed over him. He found the part he was looking for, implanting false memories, ensuring his survival.

While all this seemed to last a long time for Adam, for the rest of the world, it happened in the briefest of seconds. The confused, lost look in Ianto's eyes disappeared and Ianto smiled broadly at Adam.

"Sorry, I must've had a temporary memory lapse," Ianto shook his head.

"No harm done," Adam removed his hand, putting it back in his pocket. "Everyone, even the great Ianto Jones has them occasionally. Honestly," Adam sat heavily in his chair, tired from his ordeal, "I'm shocked it doesn't happen more often."

"To be honest, me too," Ianto nodded, walking away.

Adam and Jack watched Ianto walk away, and Jack was just starting to turn to head back to his office when he heard a thud. He spun back around to see Ianto on the ground trying weakly to push himself back up, Adam going to his side.

"Ianto, what happened?" Jack came over and helped Adam stand Ianto to his feet.

"I dunno," Ianto shook his head. "Suddenly felt weak in the knees."

"Are you feeling ill?" Adam asked.

"No, nothing like that," Ianto replied. "Not really."

"You haven't eaten at all today," Jack stated.

"Yeah, it's probably that. Low blood sugar. I am a bit hungry."

"Well, let me get you something to eat," Adam offered, standing up as Jack helped Ianto to the couch.

Adam couldn't hide a small smirk as he turned away from the pair. He had a secret about Ianto. He wasn't sure of specifics, and he wasn't even sure if he could use it, but he had leverage against him, against the tea boy. And that made him smile.

Forty-eight hours later, Adam was no more, his information dying with him. He never got a chance to use his knowledge to his advantage. He never got the chance to blackmail the youngest Torchwood member.


	2. Chapter 1

"Everyone, be careful," Jack warned as he spun the SUV around a bend in the road. "These guys have weapons, or so I was told."

"When aren't people holding an alien against their will armed and dangerous?" Ianto dryly quipped, checking to make sure he had ammo in his taser. "All to make some money."

"We don't want to kill anyone. Just remember that," Gwen warned, looking pointedly at Owen.

"What?" Owen looked back at her and then to Jack and back at her. "What are you telling me that for?"

"You just seem to have a bit of a history, that's all," Toshiko shrugged, typing on her laptop.

"So I'd rather shoot first and ask questions later," Owen shrugged. "It's not that big of a deal!"

"Well, just keep your trigger-happy attitude in check," Jack warned. "The fewer casualties, the better."

"I know. I'm not a new recruit."

Jack pulled up in front of an old, deserted factory, and as soon as the car had come to a complete halt, everyone dashed out of the car, taking up their chosen weapons in their hands.

"Why is always an abandoned warehouse or factory?" Owen moaned as they walked up the gravel towards the destination.

The metal siding on the factory was rusting, looking like an old beat up shed in the middle of a field. Great beams stuck out here and there, indicating that either part of the factory had collapsed or plans to expand had been made, but for whatever reason, was stopped. There was a decrepit fence bordering the place, but there was no gate and no security, allowing access to anyone, including the Torchwood team.

The group walked right into the compound, Jack calling out commands as they drew closer. "Toshiko, Ianto, I want you to go around back. Owen, you take the left side, Gwen the right, and I'll handle the front."

Toshiko and Ianto jogged around to the back of the building while the others took their respected places.

"The plans say that the front and back doors lead to the main part of the factory," Toshiko told Ianto as they rounded the corner. "Jack thinks that's where we'll see the most resistance. There were very few heat signatures were picked up on the outer sides of the building."

"Right, that's why he sent the both of us together," Ianto stated. "Of course, I remember the last time this happened."

"I know, but it's best if we don't think about it."

Ianto nodded in agreement.

Toshiko pressed her back against the wall as Ianto kicked open the door. Toshiko and Ianto held their weapons in front of them as they entered the room. They moved slowly, standing fairly close together.

The room they had entered was huge. It was the main part of the factory, chains hanging from the ceiling and reaching down towards the floor. In the middle of the large room was a cage with the alien inside. The pair could see the silhouette of the six legs that the creature had.

"At least we know we're in the right place," Toshiko murmured to Ianto.

"True," Ianto shrugged.

The room was dark and dusty. Walkways could be seen overhead and boxes were plied high along the floor surrounding the cage. There was a clean area of about ten feet around the cage, but boxes were stacked up behind the invisible line and some stacks closer to the wall reached almost all the way up to the ceiling. There was a metal walk way running the perimeter of the room, but it was old and rusted. Whole sections, mostly on the sides that Owen and Gwen had entered on, were missing entirely, making most of the path on those sides useless. That was probably why the largest stacks of boxes were to the sides.

In the distance, Ianto and Toshiko could see Jack easing his way through the boxes towards the cage. His eyes were wary, looking around the warehouse and watching for the so-called owners of the alien. Ianto and Toshiko were alert as well, watching the walk ways and other places around the building. However, the lighting was dark and only a little yellowed light came down on the floor.

Ianto's focus was mainly on the cage in the middle. He was trying to see what it contained. He and Toshiko moved forward slowly together. But it was so hard to see.

Footsteps on the metal grate above him alerted Jack and his head whipped up to see a man standing over the railing holding a rifle. The barrel was aimed down at the two on the floor opposite it.

"Guys, look out!" Jack called to Ianto and Toshiko.

The pair looked up just as the man's finger squeezed the trigger.

Toshiko cried out in surprise as Ianto fell to the ground. Jack pulled out his own gun, pointing it up at the man on the walkway and disarmed him with one shot, sending a bullet into the man's hand causing him to drop the gun.

The rifle fell to the floor and discharged again, causing the alien in the cage to yelp and Toshiko fell quickly to the floor, protecting her head. One of the few lights exploded and went out, showering glass down below. Even in the dark, Toshiko managed to find Ianto, crying out to him as she held up his head.

"Ianto! Ianto!" she called as Ianto's head thrashed a little and he moaned in pain.

Blood quickly spread over his shirt and coat, soaking the cloth. He twisted onto his side and curled up, his arm hugging his chest while the other hand was balled into a fist. Toshiko called to him as he gritted his teeth, trying to handle the pain.

"Jack, what's going on?" Gwen's voice came over the headsets.

"Owen, Ianto's been shot," Jack called as he raced over to the staircase and sprinted up the steps to the walk way. "Gwen, check the area and see if there is anyone else around. Do what you have to."

Toshiko gathered up the pained Ianto into her arms, trying to protect him from threats she couldn't see. She could only sit there and listen to the commotion in the warehouse. She could hear Jack roaring out commands and threats and the stomping and thudding of feet all around, but had no idea what exactly was happening. Ianto's arm was wrapped tightly around his body, gripping his side as he writhed in pain. Toshiko was talking to him, though her voice shook. It was easy to tell she was close to breaking as she held Ianto's head and stroked his hair, trying to keep him calm.

To Toshiko, it felt as though hours had passed by the time Owen finally reached the pair. She could just barely make out Owen's face in the dark, and when he had fist come over, she had pulled Ianto closer until she had identified Owen. Toshiko was still supporting Ianto's head on her legs and stroking his hair when Owen knelt down beside them. The doctor found it humorous that the hysterical one wasn't the person who had been shot.

"Ianto, let me see," Owen stated as he pulled out a flashlight from his pack and clicking it on.

"Oh God! It hurts," Ianto groaned, trying to turn onto his side again.

Owen shone the light briefly on Ianto's face. "Ianto! Let me see!" Owen called again, pulling at Ianto's arm.

Ianto finally let his arm be pulled away from his bloody chest and Owen pointed the light down onto Ianto's wound. Toshiko looked worriedly at Owen when she heard him sharply suck in air through his teeth.

"What? What is it?" she asked as Owen started digging around in his backpack.

When Owen didn't respond, Toshiko looked back down to Ianto, and gasped when she saw what made Owen react as he did.

"Hold on Ianto," Owen stated as he pulled out a rag, pressing it against Ianto's chest.

Ianto cried out in pain. "Ffyc! Y sais afiach!"

"What?" Toshiko asked, jumping at his sharp words. Even with no knowledge of the Welsh language, she could tell those sharp words were bad.

"God! That hurts!"

"Why aren't you dead?" Owen grunted, pressing the rag down.

"I don't know," Ianto was panting a little now. "But I'm not complaining," he groaned as a wave of pain passed over him. "Besides, the wound isn't that bad, is it?"

"Owen, how is he?" Jack's voice came over the headset.

"Jack, something weird's going on here," Owen replied.

There was a pause where Owen heard Jack's boot stomp the metal railing and something hit the railing soon after. "What do you mean?"

"Jack...the bullet hit his chest. It was a clean shot to the heart. But…Ianto's still alive and breathing."

"What? How is that possible?"

"I don't know."

"Owen, can you stop the pain?" Ianto asked suddenly, gritting his teeth harder.

"I can't do anything until we get you back to the hub," Owen stated.

"You have to do something quick or he could bleed to death!" Toshiko cried.

"I know that!" Owen snapped. "But my hands are tied until we get back to the hub. Jack, we need to go!"

"There's clean up to do. I need you."

"I know, but Ianto could bleed out before you finish. We need to go!"

"Shit! Okay, alright. Fine, Owen, get him out to the vehicle. We'll get him back to the hub quickly," Jack instructed.


End file.
